Full Text Of President Jonathan's Remark At The Launch Of The Victims Support Fund

Remarks by His Excellency, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCF at the launch of the Victims Support Fund on Thursday 31st July, 2014

PROTOCOLS

1.I
welcome you all to this all-important occasion as we set out to demonstrate our
love and care for those who have been affected by terrorism in our country.

2.At
this point in time in our nation’s history, we have two clear choices before
us. The first is to sit down and bemoan the tragic consequences of terrorism in
our land. The second is to stand up and take action that will show that good
will always overwhelm evil. By this fund-raising initiative, we have chosen the
latter. We are reaching out with a cuddle of comfort and a show of support to
our people.

3.One
aspect of Nigerian culture I have always been proud of is our preparedness to
always be our brother’s and sister’s keeper. This was on display in 2012 when
we experienced the natural calamity of flooding. As we fund-raise today, I am
confident that this quality, domiciled in the minds of our people, will once
again give expression through your work and the generosity and large
heartedness of the good people of Nigeria.

4.Let me
quickly share a story with you.On
Thursday, July 24th 2014, at exactly 12.35pm, a courier letter arrived in my
office from Aba, Abia State. In the package was a bank draft for N5,000 sent in
by a kind-hearted Nigerian, Dr. Uchenna Nnanna-Kalu, whom I never knew. He sent
in the draft as his own contribution to the Victims Support Fund that we are
launching today. I share this story because it touched my heart. Very clearly,
Nigerians are very good people.

5.Many
lessons are contained in this seemingly little package of gesture. The first is
that any amount donated to this cause would do. He gave what he could,
apparently from the bottom of his heart. In seeking to provide succour to the
victims of terror attacks, no amount is too small. The N5,000 Nnanna-Kalu gave
can clothe a whole family or pay for their food for some days. We should
therefore not think that our contributions have to be extremely large before
they can be useful.

6.The
second lesson from Uchenna's gesture is that you cannot defeat the Nigerian
spirit of good neighbourliness. Those who are trying to define Nigeria on the
basis of ethnicity and religion are missing the point and they will continue to
miss the point. Injury to one Nigerian is injury to all Nigerians. Discomfort
in any part of the country is discomfort to all.

7.We all
want a peaceful country where everybody will be happy, where everybody will
feel free. This generation must not be allowed to bequeath any speck of hatred
to the generation that is to come. We all must work to bequeath a country of
equity, fairness and justice to our children.

8.What
Nigerians expect this event to demonstrate is that tragedy, though undesired,
brings out the best and not the worst in us. We might be passing through some
challenging and tough times. These times as is often said will not last. There
is something constant in our culture as Nigerians: We do not allow fellow
citizens to bear tragedy by themselves alone.

9.It is
true, we are navigating a very challenging phase in our journey as a nation.
This phase has brought out the extremes of inhumanity in the misguided elements
who are hiding under the guise of religion to destroy a country we are working
so hard to build.

10.Collectively, rather than despair, we want to repair.The world only makes progress when we solve
problems. Problems cannot solve themselves. Lamentation cannot solve problems.
We solve problems by standing up and taking action! Nigerians are equal to the
task.

11.On July
16, 2014, when I inaugurated the Victims Support Fund Committee, I did say that
this is not the kind of projects we would love to wish on ourselves. We would
rather be laying foundation stones for more housing projects than compensating
people whose houses were destroyed by the terrorists. We would rather be
launching more mass transit projects than compensating people whose buses were
burnt. We would rather be attending weddings and naming ceremonies than
attending funerals of the victims of terrorism.

12.Today, as
we seek to raise funds to cater for the victims of terrorism in our land, we
are doing this with every sense of responsibility to the citizenry. This is
just one of the several steps this administration is taking to address this
unfortunate development in the land.

13.The fact
that we are setting up a victims support fund does not mean we have accepted
that terrorism is here to stay. No! Never!! Rather, this is just one of the
short-term measures in our overall strategy against the enemies of peace and
progress. We will not allow evil to overcome good. No! We will not!!

14.I
understand perfectly that millions of Nigerians are worried about the threat of
terror in our country. It is a new phenomenon that took us virtually unawares.
I never for once thought that I would, in my life time, hear of Nigerians
strapping bombs to themselves and blowing up innocent people. We would have
sworn that it is impossible!

15.Ten years
ago, no Nigerian would have imagined it. We thought it was something that could
only happen in other countries. But here we are today witnessing this sordid
phenomenon. Mr Chairman, fellow citizens, we will defeat terror and I will lead
Nigerians to achieve this.

16.Distinguished guests, when some twisted minds kidnapped innocent
schoolgirls and have since kept them captive for months, many Nigerians never
believed it could happen in our beloved country!

17.In our efforts
to rescue our daughters, we have had to battle with the dilemma of
demonstrating military might and endangering their lives or undermining the
sovereignty of Nigeria by succumbing to the blackmail of the terrorists on
their own terms. Let me restate that we will not give in or give up to
terrorists. We will continue to explore all options that will safely bring our
daughters back home. I repeat: We will not give in or give up.

18.We will
come out of this a tougher and better nation. In these trying times, we have
seen Muslims and Christians, Northerners and Southerners, men and women, and
Nigerians from all walks of life rise up in unison to condemn the terrorists.

19.Rather
than destroy the spirit and essence of our Nigerianness, the terrorists have
succeeded in uniting us and making us to see that they are a common threat to
all. By bombing mosques and churches, they have shown to us that they are
enemies to all. By killing Muslims and Christians, they have demonstrated to
every Nigerian that their evil agenda does not discriminate. Unintentionally,
they are motivating millions of Nigerians to see them as a common enemy whose
only purpose is to steal, to kill and to destroy.

20.As
Nigerians, we must find strength in these trying times. We must redefine our
sense of purpose at moments like these. We must tap into our sense of unity,
peace and progress in the face of these relentless assaults by these enemies of
peace and dispensers of horror.

21.Mr
Chairman, ladies and gentlemen, we cannot determine what terrorists do with
their minds but we can determine what we do with ours. It is our collective
duty to defeat this evil philosophy that thrives on bloodshed and sorrow. If we
truly believe that God created all of us, what then can be the basis for us to
take human lives believing that we are doing God a service? If we believe that
God is a God of love and peace, why should we sow hate and wage war in the name
of the same God?

22.I call on
all Nigerians who have a sense of purpose to join hands with the government to
defeat all destructive ideologies in our country. As a government, we will not
relent in the pursuit of these individuals until we bring them to justice. We
will not fold our arms and allow individuals with narrow agenda undermine the
integrity of Nigeria. We will not achieve victory overnight, but our steps will
continue to be strong, sure and steady.

23.We are taking
steps in investing heavily in building schools all over the country to keep the
minds of our children and youths productively and positively engaged. We are
building Almajiri Schools. We are equipping young men and women with mental
resources without letting them forgo their religious obligations. When the
pupils finish from these schools, they will not only know their religion very
well, they will graduate with skills that will keep them productive for the
rest of their lives.

24.We have also
launched the Safe Schools Initiative, not just to provide a conducive learning
environment for our kids but also to assure parents and guardians that their
wards are safe and secure. If care is not taken, the misguided actions of
terrorists can have a lasting impact on parents who would be too scared to
allow their children to seek education in the future.

25.In
addition to these, we have also launched thePresidential Initiative on the
North-East(PINE), as part of the
overall development strategy of the government.

26.We have
strengthened the Nigerian Social Insurance Trust Fund to be better able to
provide a social security protection for all Nigerians. The fund is now better
placed to protect the most vulnerable Nigerians, women and children especially,
from deprivations and financial insecurity. We have taken steps to recalibrate
the pension administration system so as to ensure that those who serve our
nation continue to live a life in gratitude to our nation after retirement.

27.But while
we earnestly await the manifestations of greater fruits of our efforts, we
cannot but pause to spare a thought for the millions of people whose lives have
been ruined one way or the other by these terrorists. As we look into the
future, we must also address the realities of the present. People have lost
loved ones. People have lost property. People have been maimed for life. People
have become refugees in their own country for no fault of theirs.

28.The reason
we set up the Victims Support Fund Committee is for all of us, everyone who is
public-spirited, to reach out to the victims. We want to galvanise the support
of Nigerians to provide succour to victims of terror all over the country. The
Victims Support Fund Committee, as I said at the inauguration, will help to
mobilise collective efforts and resources in support for the victims.

29.Mr
Chairman, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, I want to challenge us to think
deeply about how privileged we are to be able to give. It is a divine privilege
that we cannot explain. The victims did not wish this calamity upon themselves.
They did not pray for it. It could have been anyone. But for the mercy of God,
we could have been the ones needing support as a result of this insurgency. But
in His infinite mercy and grace, the Almighty God has decided that we should be
the ones giving support, not receiving it.

30.We should
therefore reach deep into our hearts and deeper into our pockets to help wipe
away the tears of our people in need.

31.Let me
conclude by reminding us of the divine wisdom from our Almighty Creator. One of
the five pillars of Islam is the practice of Zakkat: The faith enjoins all
faithful to give a certain percentage of one's income to the needy.

32.In
Christendom, the phrase “God loves a cheerful giver”, and that “it is more
blessed to give than to receive”, is well acknowledged. I urge us all to give
generously. May the Almighty God bless you most abundantly.

A big Congratulations to you on your admission to the great ife citadel. This is to inform you that payment & registration is drawing closer. Please NOTE the following :

1. Resumption for the Session is 9th March,2018
2. Payment of all Fees will commence ON February 10,2019
3. Failure to pay acceptance fee before February 28,2019 may lead to Forfeiture of admission
In a bid to serve you better and reach you more readily, OAU Peeps News Agency has decided to create a WhatsApp Group for all newly admitted students of Obafemi Awolowo University.
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A big Congratulations to you on your admission to the great ife citadel. This is to inform you that payment & registration is drawing closer. In a bid to serve you better and reach you more readily, OAU Peeps News Agency has decided to create a WhatsApp Group for all newly admitted students of Obafemi Awolowo University.

The primary aim is to disseminate targeted information to this class of persons faster.

To join the WhatsApp group, send a direct message to any of these numbers;

Babafaros: 08064189480
Samad: 07067539342

on WhatsApp using the format below.

Kindly add me to the OAU Peeps Freshmen's group. My name is Ajanlekoko Dotun, admitted to the Department of Chemistry.

You will be added once we receive your request.
NOTE: Send your request once and to only one of the numbers above.

The management of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-ife has fixed deadline for all residents of the university halls of residence to Vacate the premises.

The notice which came from the office of the Dean, Division of Students' Affairs (DSA), Professor . Aransi, stated that the deadline for the vacation of hostels was fixed in preparation for 2018/2019 session.

The release obtained from OAU Peeps News Agency also clarified the rumour that students have been asked to vacate the halls of residence before February 2,2019. The release revealed that students are allowed to stay till Friday, 22nd of February.

It further stated that only students undergoing SWEP/SIWESS and Teaching Practice are allowed beyond the stated deadline.

"The attention of the DSA has been drawn to the rumour making rounds that students have been asked to vacate hostels. This is not true as there has been no release from this division before now to that effect, bearing in mind that some…